AB 1103
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 1103 (Dodd)
As Introduced February 27, 2015
Majority vote
Committee
Natural Resources
Votes
6-1
Ayes
Williams, Cristina Garcia,
McCarty, Rendon, Mark
Stone, Wood
Noes
Harper
SUMMARY: Defines "food soiled paper" and "food waste" within the Integrated Waste
Management Act (IWMA). Specifically, this bill defines:
1) "Food-soiled paper" as including, but not limited to, food soiled napkins, towels, egg cartons,
pizza boxes, waxed or unwaxed cardboard containers, or paper food and beverage containers or
wrappers, paper bags, coffee filters, tea bags, and plates and cups that do not have a plastic
coating.
2) "Food waste" as discarded putrescible (i.e., capable of rotting in a manner that causes a nuisance
due to odors, vectors, gasses, etc.) solid, semisolid, and liquid food, including, but not limited to,
fruit, vegetables, cheese, meat, bones, poultry, seafood, bread, rice, pasta, oils, and herbs and any
other putrescible matter produced from human food production and preparation activities.
Specifies that food waste includes food-soiled paper. Specifies that food waste does not include
materials regulated by the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
EXISTING LAW, pursuant to the IWMA:
1) Requires local agencies to divert, through source reduction, recycling, and composting, 50% of
solid waste disposed by their jurisdictions.
2) Establishes a statewide diversion goal of 75% by 2020.
3) Requires a commercial waste generator, including multi-family dwellings, to arrange for
recycling services and requires local governments to implement commercial solid waste
recycling programs designed to divert solid waste from businesses.
4) Requires generators of specified amounts of organic waste to arrange for recycling services for
that material.
5) Defines "organic waste" as food waste, green waste, landscape and pruning waste, nonhazardous
wood waste, and food-soiled paper that is mixed in with food waste.
FISCAL EFFECT: None
COMMENTS: According to the author:
AB 1103 defines "food waste" to create a statewide standard definition. Presently,
there is no definition in state law and there are scores of local definitions. The bill
will assist both California commercial generators and local governments in clarifying
what is meant by "food waste" in order to help monitor what is being recycled and
AB 1103
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what is being dumped in landfills, which is necessary to protect public health and
safety.
The California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) is tasked with
diverting at least 75% of solid waste statewide by 2020. Organic materials make up one-third of the
waste stream and food continues to be the greatest single item disposed, making up over 15% of
materials landfilled. CalRecycle is also charged with implementing its Strategic Directive 6.1,
which calls for reducing organic waste disposal by 50% by 2020. According to CalRecycle,
significant gains in organic waste diversion are necessary to meet the 75% goal and implement
Strategic Directive 6.1. Recycling technologies for organic waste include composting, anaerobic
digestion, and other types of processing that generate renewable fuels, energy, soil amendments, and
mulch.
Compost and other soil amendments that can be produced from organic materials have been shown
to improve soil health by incorporating organic matter, beneficial micro-organisms, and nutrients
and reduce the need for chemical pesticides and fertilizers. These products also conserve water by
allowing water to penetrate the soil more quickly decreasing runoff.
According to the Air Resources Board (ARB), a total reduction of 80 million metric tons (MMT), or
16% compared to business as usual, is necessary to reduce statewide greenhouse gas (GHG)
emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. ARB intends to achieve approximately 78% of the reductions
through direct regulations. ARB proposes to achieve the balance of reductions necessary to meet the
2020 limit (approximately 18 MMT) through its cap-and-trade program.
Recycling organic waste provides significant GHG reductions over landfilling. Composting and
other organics processing technologies, including anaerobic digestion, reduce GHGs by avoiding the
emissions that would be generated by the material's decomposition in a landfill. Landfill gas is
generated by the decomposition of organic materials such as food, paper, wood, and yard waste.
Fifty percent of landfill gas is methane, a GHG that is 34 times more efficient at trapping heat than
carbon dioxide. While most modern landfills have systems in place to capture methane, significant
amounts continue to escape into the atmosphere. According to ARB's GHG inventory,
approximately 7 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent are released annually by landfills. That
number is expected to increase to 8.5 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2020.
Analysis Prepared by: Elizabeth MacMillan / NAT. RES. / (916) 319-2092
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